Senate votes to drive final stake through Trans Texas Corridor

The Dallas Morning News ^ | May 21, 2011 | Christy Hoppe

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

AUSTIN — The ceremony was brief and drew few mourners, but the Trans Texas Corridor is finally dead.

The Senate unanimously passed a bill that strikes from state law any language, reference and authority once connected to the massive highway envisioned to slice a swath through Texas.

The same measure already has passed the House. There are some minor differences that still need to be reconciled, but the bill is expected to go to Gov. Rick Perry, who will have to decide whether to join in the final rites for his once-prized project.

Legislators did keep a provision that was allowed under the authority of the Trans Texas Corridor: the potential of 85 mph speed limits on certain highways that are properly engineered to handle the higher speeds.

The highway corridor to parallel Interstate 35 had been a signature issue for Perry, but it was doomed after angry citizens rebelled against the private contracts, the massive proposed taking of private land and what was seen as arrogance by state transportation officials.

Perry said last year that the highway is dead, but lawmakers this year are determined to salt the earth.

[org.whodat]

Perry is going to kill his own baby, dang!!!!

[af_vet_rr]

One of the things about the TTC that had Texans up in arms was the Kelo vs. New London style eminant domain abuse to avoid offering anything close to market value for the land. Including huge tracts wherever there might have been an interchange so political cronies could be awarded all comercial developement.

That was one of the most damning things - taking land from private citizens and giving it over to private companies. It'd be one thing if the land was taken and put under control of TxDOT, but it was going to be given to these private companies to build gas stations, hotels, etc. That's just not right. Those private companies should have to buy the land from those private citizens, not have the state of Texas take it from Texans and turn it over to them.

[Squantos]

Texans here in the Panhandle run 75 or 80 all the time. I-40 west in New Mexico is 75 mph limit now so most cruise at least 85 .

Wide roads good surface an designs.

Certain areas can tolerate such speeds safely.

My experience / opinion ....

[T-Bird45]

Why did Hillary go to Mexico City last December for the North American Union Plan annual meeting if they had intentions of shutting down plans for the Corridor?

She was researching the perfect Margarita and seven-layer dip recipes???

[deport]

It should be dead and I hope Perry signs it

---

It doesn’t need his signature to become law if the Leg gets it done and agreed to. Many laws become reality after the Leg adjourns without the Gov. signature after a specified time. Now he has the right to veto a bill should he desire but I don’t think he’ll do that to the TTC.

[af_vet_rr]

I’ve heard about this ‘highway’ but can someone from TX give more details on it? What was the purpose to begin with?

I heard some years ago that the ultimate route was all the way to Canada? Does that sound right? Anyway just wondered if someone could provide some more details.

The idea was that it would stretch from deep in Mexico up into Canada, and the idea is still alive on a national level through the North American SuperCorridor Coalition, which is part of another group that is being revived after Nobama picked up Bush and Perry's torch.

Companies could stop using American labor to unload ships from China by unloading them in Mexico and skipping the major American ports. Texans' bigger concern is that it requires fairly open borders since the cargo needs to move through the border quickly to be delivered as quick and cheap as possible. It also requires a lot of land being taken from Texans and given over to private companies.

It's a bigger part of the North American SuperCorridor Coalition, which is a part of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, but they seem to have become very quiet for a short while before Obama helped to revive it this year!

There is/was a Freeper who was keeping the Wikipedia TTC article updated and it's still got a lot of information, although in the past people have tried to remove some of that.

There were a couple of private websites watching it as well: CorridorWatch and Trans-Texas Corridor News

I never understood how Perry and his cronies believed that putting a lot of Texas dockworkers out of a job and taking a lot of land from farmers, rangers, and other private owners would be good for the Texas economy in the long run.

[Grams A]

On 59 south of Houston there is an awful lot of new concrete all the way to the border. I do believe verification is in order - not sure I would trust that the TTH is DOA.

[Grams A]

At one time there was a lot on the internet about it, particularly beginning about 2007 but don’t know about any longer. I have friends in KC who were really worried about it going through there as KC was designated a major hub and it was going to take a whole lot of farm land.

[Outlaw Woman]

Thank you for the resources.

That verifies part of what I remember. Maybe it was the Super Corridor that I heard about but in any case, it is another blatant attempt at globalization. I’m so sick of these evil politicians that continue to try and destroy America.

I’ll be interested to see if Perry signs it without alot of bs. I like Rick Perry or rather I like alot of the things I’ve heard but cannot understand how he could be for something like this. Hopefully he’s had a change of heart since the inception of the idea.

Thanks again.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

I suspect that the new concrete will be part of I-69 some time in the future.

[Georgia Girl 2]

If Perry is thinking of jumping in the 2012 GOP Presidential campaign as a Tea Party type candidate he better sign in red ink. The RINO label is really following him.

[smokingfrog]

Time to kill it real good!

[philman_36]

This needs someone to read the Bill very carefully and check all the out links / references in it.
You're asking for a whale to be reeled in with a Zebco!

H.B. 1201

[af_vet_rr]

I’ll be interested to see if Perry signs it without alot of bs. I like Rick Perry or rather I like alot of the things I’ve heard but cannot understand how he could be for something like this. Hopefully he’s had a change of heart since the inception of the idea.

You can't understand how he can be for something like this???

Seriously? The deals that Perry was trying to make with that Spanish company that would last 50+ years and involve over $100 billion dollars, including a no-bid $1 billion plus contract given to the Spanish company, that Perry was trying to keep secret from the taxpayers didn't set off alarm bells in your head? The fact that some of Perry's good buddies, including Giuliani and others were benefiting from the TTC didn't make you pause for a moment?

One of Perry's main aides helping to secure the TTC contracts while an employee of the state and then turning around and taking a job with the main TTC contractor didn't make you wonder if something fishy was going on?

He was talking about it back in 2001:

With Texas serving as the Gateway to Mexico, it is time that we receive congressional funding that reflects the instrumental role our state plays as a port of entry. With a Texan in the White House, I believe there is no greater opportunity to end the funding discrimination that crippled Texas infrastructure under the previous administration. Good infrastructure is essential to the free flow of commerce. It is a matter of economic fact that free trade lifts the tide for all the boats in the harbor. U.S. trade with Mexico has increased by 500% since 1994. Exports and imports between Texas and Mexico now exceed $100 billion dollars annually. Thousands of jobs have been created for Texas and Mexican workers, confirming the indisputable fact that trade with Mexico is big business for Texas.

The fruits of NAFTA have just begun to ripen. At the same time, we must not allow the roots of the tree to become poisoned. The NAFTA agreement not only signaled a new era of economic possibility, but a new era of bi-national cooperation. That is why it is wrong, and inherently detrimental to our relationship with Mexico for the U.S. Congress to pursue a protectionist policy that forbids Mexican trucks from U.S. roadways. It is bad public policy, and it violates the terms of the NAFTA agreement we agreed to. Mexican trucks that meet our safety standards should be given the same access to U.S. roads as our Canadian neighbors to the north.

As you can tell from Perry's words above, this was not some fluke, it's been a major cornerstone of his policy as governor since he took office. He didn't go to the Bilderberger meeting or get chummy with one Mexican and Canadian official after another just to see this thing disappear.

If anything, I wouldn't be surprised if he tries to use the signing to twist his role in this into something else that would make the Tea Party happy, and to try and draw our attention away from TxDOT doing something else.

With Obama reviving the SPP, Perry now has Obama on his team, even if they act like they don't like each other. Perry will not pass up Obama reviving the SPP, that's too good of an opportunity.

The thing that scares me is that if Perry were to run and somehow win the Presidency, can you imagine how easily he could push National SuperCorridor down our throats with the bribed RINOs and Dims in Congress? He would not pass up that opportunity, he's been wanting a major corridor for a decade now.

[SaraJohnson]

It was a favor for Rove and Bush.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[Free in Texas]

The TTC affair alone should be enough to disqualify Goodhair for serious consideration as a potential POTUS. Throw in his Guardasil fiasco and his penchant for getting his good ol’ boy buddies sweet deals on the state dime and you essentially have a democrat. Which he once was openly.

[muawiyah]

We'll see if the real landowners are concerned ~ so far some are ~ but what about all those guys who were going to have the residual ON an interchange?

Bet they're not happy.

BTW, the power of the interchange to foster development is much over-rated. It's much better to leave that interchange alone so it can grow and expand as heavy development occurs on "nearby" land ~ on larger tracts.

Perry and his cronies are acting on behalf of their own cronies.

This has been going on since the earliest days of public highways.

[muawiyah]

What you are telling us is that PERRY is an authentic RINO ~ who was once openly a Democrat.

Did he run for public office as a Democrat or was he just another one of those guys trying to climb through the chairs until it was his turn?

BTW, with a real RINO in the mix, you can take a look at him and compare him to the Leftwingtards so many here mistakenly call RINO.

We really have to get this term under control ~ if the politician was NEVER A DEMOCRAT (or other major third party member) he or she CANNOT EVER BE A RINO.

That way we separate concern over party politics from concern over ideological difference.

Lugar is a Leftwingtard according to present Republican and Conservative positions. At the same time he has always been a Republican and has never run for office as a Democrat.

When it comes to highway right of way scandals, that's traditional partisan, bipartisan, nonpartisan ~ and conducted more in the open that most people realize.

The day they say "BYPASS" means you are about 2 years too late to get in on the deal ~ but that doesn't mean a bypass is bad. They are usually good.

BTW, classically bypasses were opposed mostly by folks with businesses in the old downtown centers ~ so they'd put up the hue and cry and claim the highway project was corrupt just so they could keep all those cars driving past their store where they'd maybe stop and buy something.